Tag: dance music

Welp. I’m back again. Here’s a new podcast for a new year. A mix of old, new, odd, and wonderful. It’s my favorite cosmic slop. No coffee necessary. Just hit play. So here I am sharing with you. I’m trying to get into the groove again, so it’s going to take some time. But these songs help me get through the day. I hope they do the same for you.

It’s that time of year again. Seems like yesterday 2017 began and now it’s over. So that means I’m going to share my favorite 30 albums of the year. I’m not going to call them the “best” but these 30 albums were on rotation for a period of time this year on my ipod. I enjoyed them all. They helped me stay sane, awake, and got me through the day when I felt like the world was just setting up shop on my shoulders, never to leave. There was a lot of fluff this year though. I will not share that with you. Some music left me scratching my head and thinking, “Really? People LIKE this?” But that’s for another discussion. If you follow me on twitter, you might have seen random one liner tweets about bands or singers that caught my ear and held onto my attention. If you haven’t listened to anyone on this list, and you want to broaden your mind, check them out. Don’t close off your mind to new music. There are plenty of diamonds in the rough. I would also be remised if I didn’t give a huge shout out to all the ladies who made some great music this year. I truly got a kick out of going back and seeing how many albums on my hard drive and ipod I had that were made by ladies, young and old. To quote Annie Lennox, “Sisters are doing it for themselves.” Whether the songs were about love, or injustice, or family issues, the voices of women made a huge impact this year. And I hope for years to come. So, here is the list. Happy New Year One and All..

Well. Another year of music has come and gone, which means, another list of favorites to publish for you to read, consume, and just maybe decide what to put on your own end of the year playlist for gist and shiggles. These 40 albums were my favorites. I try not to say the “best “ones because I know that for every album that is on the list, I probably missed my fair share of musical goodies but these are the ones that got numerous plays on my ipod. This year revealed reunions, long awaited returns, artistic passion, departed souls, and your run of the mill pop fluff – of which there was a little too much of I admit. I was bored by many of the pop songs I heard on the radio – same beats, same squeaky voiced people singing the same things over and over again. You could take the head off one singer, replace it with another and you wouldn’t really be able to tell the difference. But the true artists – the ones that display quality over quality, fought their way through the cracks of pop goo. So for that I’m grateful for this year of music and helping me get out of darkness. For now anyway.. Enjoy the list. And Happy New Year.

It’s hard to pinpoint Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino. He’s a writer, an actor, an entertainer, a rapper, and now … it seems a funk master. I’ve been a fan of his music for a few years now. His lyrics are honest, heartfelt, and in some regards, just plain weird but entertaining – ranging from his self proclaimed nerdiness, growing up in middle class life, racism, and relationships. There’s a lot going on in that mind of his. And now he’s back with a new album called, “Awaken, My Love!” This album hands down, threw me. Goodbye to the rhymes for this project, he concentrated on making an old school funk, rock, and r&b album that would make George Clinton and Bootsy Collins proud. I was quite surprised really. But that’s what an artist does – always throws you. You should never expect the same thing. And Donald delivers. From the opening track, “Me and Your Mama,” a standout rock and funk song where he illustrates his singing chops, lines right up with there with the best of them, to “Boogieman,” and “Zombies,” it’s just a roller coaster of fun.. It’s exciting, and I appreciate him taking a complete left turn with his music. As someone who listens to rock music, and is Black, I definitely applaud anyone else who is Black and is in the music field to stretch and break boundaries of what Black artists are used to doing in music.

I’m not going to go on and on like most critics do about albums. Most of you won’t read it anyway. Just trust me when I say this album is worth the time and the listen. It’s 40 plus minutes of pure funky entertainment. And I most add that Donald’s voice as a singer isn’t bad at all. Usually I joke, “all rappers want to act, and all actors want to sing” but in his case, he’s pretty good. The time away from doing music has served him well and he came back with a vengeance. This album is a musical head trip. With every listen I hear something new and that’s how music should be, at least in my opinion – never boring, always intriguing. “Anything less would be uncivilized.” So come. Feel alive with the Gambino and travel inside his mind for a while. It’s worth it.

As much as I dig melancholy and deep lyrics, there are times I just want to listen to fun music – music that keeps my mind preoccupied from the other voices in my head I hear on the daily. Music that stays in my ears like infected earworms that leave me smiling. Congratulations Bruno Mars, you have been selected to uplift my spirits. And you do so magnificently.

The new album, 24K Magic, is a dance extravaganza of entertainment. It’s pretty clear that he was influenced by 80s and 90s music because the whole album is just a throwback to that era. I’m not complaining about it at all. I believe Bruno wants the world to just relax, have fun, dance, and not think about their problems. That’s kind of what he’s been all about anyway, but this third album really drives the idea home. From the title track, to “Chunky” to “Callin’ All My Lovelies” to my particular favorite, “Finesse” he keeps the party moving. My only complaint is that there are only 9 songs. He left me wanting more. My guess? Since the album is a tribute to old school 80s synths, and 90s drumbeats, maybe he also wanted to stay true to how albums were made back in the day 8 or 9 songs, and that was it. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s a short album, but it still packs a punch nonetheless.

What I love about Bruno is that he has tremendously big bravado in such a small stature. And he’s so darn likable. That smile, the way he carries himself, how he pines for the ladies it goes a long way to garner attention. One thing is for sure, he’s like the Tazmanian Devil. Once he leaves, you always know he was around because his voice and spirit stay with you for the rest of the day. He makes it his mission to make sure everyone has a good time because life is just too short not to and I appreciate that in a man. Even his love songs are pretty entertaining and I’m not a fan of love songs. He is a complete charmer and I’m thankful that in a world of music crap we have Bruno to celebrate life. And this is coming from a resident Eeyore. So if you want to have a good time, throw a party, twerk yourself into oblivion, put on 24 K Magic. You won’t be disappointed.

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Dearest earbudders, while we wait for Digable Planets to get on the good foot and make a comeback, member Ladybug Mecca has preoccupied herself with DJ/Producer king Prince Paul, collaborating in a group called Brookzill (“Brooklyn and Brazil”). Combining Afro-Brazilian rhythms, hip hop, jazz, and all around good stuffs, this is a band I am seriously looking forward to listening to when their album drops October 7th. While we wait for this already predicted musical masterpiece, check out their first single, “Saudade Songbook” with Count Bass D. My ears are excited.